Organic chemistry is a traditionally difficult subject with high failure & withdrawal rates and many areas of conceptual difficulty for students. To promote student learning and success, four undergraduate organic chemistry and spectroscopy courses at the first to third year level (17-420 students) were "flipped" in 2013-2014. In the…

The 1969 version of "The Italian Job" is used as context for teaching turning forces and introducing or enhancing the understanding of equilibrium and Newton's Third Law of Motion. A Harrington Legionnaire coach is used as the getaway vehicle for a gold heist and the film ends on a genuine cliffhanger, with the rear half of the coach…

Describes the methods that have been developed to blend descriptive chemistry and principles in a first-year chemistry course. The key is active teaching of the subject using the periodic table as a template. Inorganic chemistry is taught using a group approach: developing trends that help teaching and learning become obvious if all elements of…

Reports that a conference for professional chemists, educators in chemistry, and students was held to explore the issue of teaching chemistry to handicapped students. The ideas generated from the participants are intended to be used in preparing a manual of guidelines. (Author/SA)

A global survey was conducted by Unesco in 1986 on the place occupied by the teaching of science, mathematics, and technology, with the data indicating that mathematics and science are firmly entrenched in school curricula worldwide, but the place of technology is much more tentative. It was decided to probe more deeply into the adequacy of these…

Provides a running commentary on a chemistry instructor's first day in a first course in chemistry. Focuses on the use of fire and chemists' attempts to explain this phenomenon. Provides the ongoing descriptions of the experiments, a summary of the observations, and the key comments made by the instructor. (TW)

How do good science students perceive the process of learning science? What occurs in the learning process that motivates students to accept the challenge of pursuing a career in science? This paper reports on panel discussions held by teams of medical students, research science doctoral students, science education students, and high school…

Describes a visual transparency method to develop the concept of resonance with respect to molecular resonance hybrid structures and partial charge on the atoms of an ion. Discusses the distinction between tautomerism and resonance, and emphasizes clarification of the Lewis structure concept. (JM)

Faculty have designed alternative ways to hear from their students. The use of a box for comments and questions at the back of a University of Vermont chemistry class and an online computer conference to enhance writing classes at the University of Michigan are described. (MLW)

This report presents results from one of several research studies involving the European Community Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students (ERASMUS), one of the inter-university cooperation programs initiated by the Commission of European Communities. It is noted that ERASMUS, as well as the other inter-university cooperation…